North have played ruckmen Todd Goldstein and Braydon Preuss together in rounds one and three, and can also call on Majak Daw - who played in round two in Goldstein's absence - and forward Ben Brown to fill ruck holes.

Hrovat said on Tuesday that the new rule hadn't given his side any headaches, even though it had attracted many critics.

"There is probably a luxury that we have that maybe some other clubs don't in having a few ruckman we can choose from and rotate through because with the third-man-up rule it is pretty important to have a good ruckman," Hrovat said.

In the latter stages of North's narrow round two loss to Geelong, the Cats chose not to nominate a ruckman at several contests, leaving Preuss to tap straight to teammates who were immediately set upon by the opposition.

Despite Hrovat's admiration for the rule, Bulldogs veteran Matthew Boyd was less eager to sing its praises and admitted his club's approach to it was still fluid.

"We are still coming to terms with it and adapting and changing a few of the things that we do around the ball," Boyd said. "So as the year goes on we will see how teams adapt. Coaches are very smart and are able to work their way around certain rule changes so we are still feeling our way with it."

Boyd said he had not heard of or seen the incident in his side's loss to Fremantle, where diminutive midfielder Tom Liberatore nominated for a boundary throw-in ruck contest with Adam Sandilands.

Liberatore did so despite Bulldogs ruckman Tom Campbell standing near the contest.

Hrovat and Boyd spoke at a joint Whitten Oval media conference to promote the first AFL match to be held on Good Friday, with proceeds to go to the Royal Children's Hospital Good Friday Appeal.

Hrovat - representing his new club at his previous club's home - said it was a thrill to play in the first match.

"It's great that we have been able to get this match," he said. "Hopefully we can make it our own, along with the Bulldogs."

Boyd has been at the Bulldogs since 2003 and has never had the opportunity to play in a regular-season stand-alone blockbuster like the Good Friday clash.

"It is really important [for us to put a stamp on Good Friday]," he said. "We are honoured to be one of the sides that gets to pioneer this game.

"These two clubs haven't traditionally had blockbuster games to get excited about and draw big crowds and television audiences ... who wouldn't want to watch a great game of footy on Good Friday?"

North will be hoping they can win their first game for 2017 against a Bulldogs side that was beaten by Fremantle in an upset in Perth.

"We have been very close [to winning], we probably should have won against the Cats and obviously we are really disappointed about that," Hrovat said. "We think if we can recapture that sort of form that we had against the Cats then we know our best can beat anyone."

There was no news on whether the concussed Liam Picken would be available for selection, Boyd said. He also said the six-day break and the added factor of travelling back from Perth would not diminish his team's energy.

The Bulldogs' head physio Chris Bell told the club's website that Picken's availability won't be known until later in the week, after the midfielder went off with concussion following a heavy knock.

Stewart Crameri will also be monitored throughout the week. He missed the trip to Perth with hip soreness.